Denise Stokes, breastfeeding
mother to
8-month old Daniel was called for Jury Duty by the Wood
County Common Pleas Court in April 2002. She was not excused, even though she was nursing an
infant! This is her story:

..."I felt like a milk
machine for the first five months," Denise said. "By the time I was
through nursing him and burping him, it was time to start all over
again."

For this reason, Denise was
more than a little put out that Wood County Common Pleas Court did not agree that her status as a nursing
mother should excuse her as a potential juror.

"According to them,
it's (breastfeeding your baby) is not a 'reasonable' excuse. Well, that's crazy!"
said Denise, who, for the record, is not averse to jury duty. The wife of a
lawyer, she has high regard for this civic duty - just not right now, when
every third hour belongs to her son...

(It's a nursing-mom thing.
You might not understand, but trust me: Denise has a point, which can range
all the way from extreme discomfort to nasty infection.)

Still, court officials tell
me state law provides no exemption for breastfeeding -

so Denise Stokes reported
for jury duty yesterday at 8:29 a.m., Daniel on one hip.

…”I’m a proud, nursing
mother”, (said Denise), “but (state law) says that’s not good enough. What
do we have to do to change this situation?”

Excerpts taken from the article, “Nursing Mom Bewildered by
Jury-Duty Call” by Roberta De Boer, The Toledo Blade, April 30, 2002